Thoughts from Dad

I'm often asked what my best memories with Ayden are. It has always been a tough answer. I didn't have a particular memory that I could really point to...until I looked across our house last night into the living room just before heading to bed. (We have an open floor plan where the kitchen, dining area and living room all connect). I stood in the kitchen and looked across to the recliner on the far end of the house. Then it hit me...my favorite memory with Ayden was what would have been this morning...

As I type, Lindsay is in bed. She is not a morning person and I am not much of a late night kind of person. The deal we made was that Lindsay would generally take care of Ayden in the night when he woke up or needed a diaper change or needed to be fed (although I did take a few feedings for her). The trade off was that days I was not working, I would get up in the early morning (sometimes 5 or 6, the occasional 4 o'clock early rise or the blessed 7 am wake up time) and take Ayden with me into the living room and take care of him so she could stretch out and sleep.

Ayden and I would go change his diaper...a time he LOVED...especially if it was a stinky diaper...that was HILARIOUS to him when I would give him the shewwwwwww wheeeeee!!! noises. Then it was time to eat. Then he wanted to sit up for a while and play. He would sit on my knee or on my lap and we would do whatever entertained him. He would smile and laugh so much in the mornings. We had a lot of talks about whatever...I would talk and he would "respond" and give me a piece of his mind sometimes...just babbling up a storm. Then after about 2 or 3 hours, it was morning nap time. We'd wrap up in the blanket and lay back in the recliner and drift off to sleep.

The other trade off was that on mornings we both began heading back to work and on Sunday mornings, I would get up and get my shower while Ayden slept in with mommy for a little while. Then I would take him to get him ready for his day while Lindsay got up to get ready. We would go and change the diaper, was him up real good, play a little bit, get him dressed and by that time Lindsay would be ready (she always got ready a little faster when her LITTLE man was waiting for her...I never quite had that effect on her). I am thankful that my last memory with Ayden was that morning as I got ready for school...it was a morning like the others...I got my daddy time in with him.

Jeremy